Mail-bag support.



W. H. TELL.

' MAIL BAG SUPPORT. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 12, 1908.

I av'wantoz dfm witnesses UNITED. STATES- PATENT ormon.

WALTER H. TELL, or GULFPORT, MIssIssIPPI.

MAIL-BAG SUPPORT.

Application filed August 12, 1908. Serial No. 448,197.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, VALTER H. TELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at G-ulfport, in the county of Harrison and State of Mississippi, have invented certain new and useful lmprovements in Mail-Bag Supports, of which the following is a speci fication, reference being had to the acco1npanying drawings.

This invention relates to improvements in mail bag support-s or stands for railways.

The object of the invention is to provide a simple and practical mail bag support which will efi'ectively hold a mail bag in proper position to be engaged by the catching apparatus on a moving car.

With the above and other obj eot-s in view, the invention consists of the novel features of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of the improved mail bag delivery apparatus or stand and showing the supporting arms in their operative position in full lines and in their dropped or inoperative position in dotted lines; Fig. is a top plan View of the parts shown in Fig. l; and Fig. 3 is a detail View looking toward the ends of the drop arms and showing the mail bag retaining devices.

In the drawings 1 denotes a post or standard which is arranged adjacent to a railway track and which has upper and lower drop arms 2, 3 adapted to support a mail bag B between them and in a position to be picked up by the catching apparatus on a mail car. The upper supporting arm 2 is fulcrumed intermediate its ends on a transverse pivot 4 arranged in the rearwardly curved upper ends of brackets 5 secured on opposite sides of the post. The pivot 4 is disposed in rear of the plane of the post 1 so that the arm 2 may swing to a vertical position, shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, and when in its horizontal position it will rest upon the top of the post, as shown in full lines in said figure. A weight 6 provided upon the rear end of the arm 2 tends to make it drop to its normal or vertical position. The lower arm 3 is pivoted at its inner or rear end on a pivot 7 arranged in curved brackets 8 secured on opposite sides of the post 1. The shape of the rear end of the arm 3 and its mounting in the brackets 8 is such that it Specification of Letters Pa te nt.

' Patented can drop by gravity from its horizontal position shown in full lines in Fig. 1 to its dotted line position shown in said figure.

Upon the front or outer ends of the arms 2, 3 are arranged right angularly projecting mail bag supporting pins 9, 10 adapted to receive the rings 6 on the opposite ends of the mail bag or pouch B. The ring at the top of the bag is retained upon the pin 9 by a lever 11, one end of which is pivoted at 12 in the forked head of a bolt in the arm 2 and the other end of which has a curved or cam face 13 to rest upon the pin 9 and retain the ring Z) thereon and also an enlarged portion 14 which forms a weight to hold said retaining lever in its operative position shown more clearly in Fig. 3. A similar retaining lever 15 is fulcrumed intermediate its ends in a similar manner at 16 upon the lower arm 3 and has at one end a curved or cam portion 17 to engage the pin 10 and retain the ring I) thereon and at its other end a weight 18, which latter retains the end 17 in engagement with the pin 10. These retaining devices or levers 11, 15 effectively prevent the mail bag from being blown oif of the supporting arms 2, 3 but at the same time permit the rings 5 to slip off of the pins 9, 10 when the bag is grasped by the catching arm upon a car.

In operation, the arm 2 is swung to its horizontal position and the ring 6 at one end of the mail bag is slipped over the pin 9 while the retaining lever is held elevated. The arm 3 is then raised to a horizontal position and the ring 6 at the lower end of the bag is slipped over the pin 10 while the lever 15 is disengaged from said pin. hen the levers 11, 12 are released they will engage the pins 9, 10 respectively and retain the rings Z) upon said pins until the mail bag is caught by a passing ear and drawn ofi of the pins 9, 10. When the latter happens the arms 2, 3 will drop by gravity to their clotted line position shown in Fig. 1, in which position they will be out of the way.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the invention is exceedingly simple in con struction and may therefore be produced at a comparatively small cost and will be strong and durable in use.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed is:

1. A device of the character described comprising upper and lower supporting Nov. 24, 1908.

arms, pins carried by said arms and Weightengage said pin and retain a mail bag ed retaining levers pivoted upon said arms thereon. 10' and having curved or cam portions to e11- In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my gage said pins and retain a mailbag thereon. signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

2. A device of the character described WALTER H. TELL. comprising a supporting arm, a pin upon Witnesses: said arm for engagement by a mail bag and JAMES D. CLOITAR,

a Weighted lever having a curved portion to T. M. FQRTNER. 

